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Daily News: L.A. County Should Revisit Measure B

CHATSWORTH, Calif. — The Los Angeles Daily News editorial board today said that adult entertainment talent and producers should get another chance at being heard about Measure B regulations.

Last week, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, 4-0, moved forward with new health permit fees for adult film shoots that cost producers $1,672 for a two-year film permit.

The fee structure comes after five years of litigation after passage of Measure B — Los Angeles County’s Safer Sex in the Adult Film Industry Act — that was sponsored by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, in 2012.

In the editorial today, the paper, which has its largest readership in Porn Valley, said that “working with the industry is the best way to” accomplish the voter-approved law.

“Predictably, the measure’s primary effect has been to drive the industry out of the county, which might make those particularly concerned about the moral purity of L.A. County happy, but it does absolutely nothing to protect adult film performers overall,” the editorial board wrote.

“Short of repealing the misguided, pointless Measure B, the least the county should do is ensure the measure actually accomplishes its ostensible purpose of keeping [talent and] producers safe.”

The editorial board noted that Measure B’s requirements have drawn strong condemnation from the adult film industry, particularly at last week’s Board of Supervisors meeting.

Performers and producers all told the board that the fee structure would hurt smaller producers and discourage compliance.

It was also noted by the Free Speech Coalition, the editorial board wrote, that Los Angeles County has adopted a scheme that criminalizes adult production and provides incentives for those shooting outside the county or in the shadows.

The FSC “argued that the industry wanted to work with the county to make the permitting system more workable for the industry, but it was denied the opportunity,” the editorial board wrote.

Pictured: The Board of Supervisors meeting last week included testimony from scores of adult entertainment industry stakeholders. The meeting also included attendance of 80 hired hands from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Measure B’s sponsor. Each of the paid temps wore white “Enforce Measure B” T-shirts.